Saturday, 22 January 2011

Lunchtime spaces

As mentioned previously, 'In Search of Space' is not a blog about intergalactic exploration, but more about my quest for the new, whether it be new music, new books or new places ... or just the space to do things. This week has been a bit of a blur again as work is manic, but I did manage two lunchtime strolls around London. The first was to one of my favourite areas, Marylebone High Street, which makes a great place to window shop in the independent retailers. I usually pop into the Oxfam book shop there which is always stocked high with great second hand books. The day was fairly gery as I made my way there but on the return trip, the clouds parted briefly and I managed to take the picture below of St. Mary's Church in Bryanston Square. What's always struck me about this church is that it looks impressive enough to be a well know London landmark yet it lurks, almost unknown to the east of the bustling Edware Road and south of the A40.

St. Mary's Church, Bryanston Square, London

The second walk I did was in to Hyde Park and along to the Hyde Park Lido café for an excellent lunch of a salmon foccacia and a pot of tea, overlooking the Serpentine. The weather was very grey so I didn't take any pictures but will do next time if it's bright enough. Just getting out of the office for an hour at lunchtime really does seem to breath new life into me - I must make an effort to do it on a more regular basis, and avoid just grabbing a quick sandwich and eat it whilst working.

As well as lunch time excursions, I also managed an evening trip to Berwick Street, to search through the various record shops to feed my new passion for folk music. I was delighted to pick up a further 3 albums by The Incredible String Band, a couple by Pentangle, a couple by Fairport Convention, and the one I'm looking forward to listening to the most, 'The Garden of Jane Delawney' by Trees.

Trees - The Garden of Jane Delawney, c.1970

What I've heard by this band on lastfm has all been excellent so am hoping the album lives up to expectations.

About Me

Having grown up in one of the London suburbs, I'm interested in John Betjeman, J.G.Ballard, London suburbs, Avengerland (Borehamwood area where the classic 1960's and 1970's TV shows were filmed). More recently I have become interested in Psychogeography and Urban, Suburban and Coastal Wandering, which is where most of the subject matter in this blog now comes from.

I'm also an avid music listener and collector since the late 1970's. I like all sorts of genres ... punk, post-punk, new wave, industrial, ambient, krautrock, alternative, indie, goth ... naturally I have quite a few items I no longer need in physical format, so here's a link to my records and CDs for sale

www.dakotaboo.com is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk

www.dakotaboo.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com